Use of a natural metabolite to increase crop production

ABSTRACT

Described are compositions and methods to increase bud break in order to increase aspects of one or both of plant vegetative and reproductive growth, by use of a natural metabolite. In particular, the present disclosure provides a natural metabolite either alone or as part of a fertilizer blend to increase crop production. Additionally the present disclosure provides a natural metabolite in combination with one or both of a plant growth regulator and a biostimulant to increase crop production.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.13/519,889, which is a a U.S. national stage application ofInternational Application No. PCT/US2010/062267, filed Dec. 28, 2010,which claims the benefit under 35 USC 119(e) of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 61/290,473, filed Dec. 28, 2009, each of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

FIELD

Described are compositions and methods to increase bud break in order toincrease aspects of one or both of plant vegetative and reproductivegrowth, by use of a natural metabolite. In particular, the presentdisclosure provides a natural metabolite either alone or as part of afertilizer blend to increase crop production. Additionally the presentdisclosure provides a natural metabolite in combination with one or bothof a plant growth regulator and a biostimulant to increase cropproduction.

BACKGROUND

Increasing world populations and dwindling productive farm land placeincreasing demands on agricultural efficiency. The sustainability ofagriculture demands that production per unit area of land be increasedin a cost-effective manner. It has long been the goal of growers to beable to manipulate the vegetative and reproductive growth of plants toincrease the quantity and quality of crops. Cultivars of vegetable,fruit, nut, grain, forage and ornamental crops are no exception. Totalyield is expressed as a function of quantity and mass as the product oforgan (e.g., root, stem, leaf, flower, seed and fruit) or plant numbermultiplied by organ or plant weight. Thus, an increase in total cropyield may result from an increase in quantity, an increase in mass, or acombination of the two. As growers strive to increase profitability oftheir farm lands, quantity and size has become increasingly important.This is increasingly important in the production of fruit and nut crops.Accordingly, since consumers tend to prefer large size fruit and nuts,they are commercially more valuable than small size fruit and nuts.

Total yield of vegetable, fruit, nut, grain, forage and ornamental cropsis affected by many factors. For instance, fruit quantity is dependenton flower number and the number of branches capable of bearing flowers,while fruit size is dependent on the number of fruit set. Seedproduction influences both the number of fruit set and fruit size. Fruitsize is also influenced by the number of leaves exporting the productsof photosynthesis to the fruit. Root, tuber and bulb crops are similarlyaffected by the number of leaves exporting photosynthate to the belowground portions of the plant. Above and below ground parts of the plantproduce hormones that further affect plant growth and crop yield. Rootdevelopment, nutrient uptake, water availability, climate and stress(abiotic and biotic) all affect photosynthesis and plant metabolism andhence fruit size. Additionally, all aspects of production are affectedby agricultural practices such as pruning, fertilization, irrigation anduse of nutritional supplements and plant growth regulators.

At the present time, plant growth regulators (PGRs) are one of the mostpowerful tools available for manipulating the vegetative andreproductive growth of crop plants. For a wide variety of annual,biennial and perennial crops, PGRs have been used to solve productionproblems. For example, PGRs have been used successfully as foliar spraysto increase flowering, synchronize bloom, or change the time offlowering to avoid adverse climatic conditions or to shift harvest to atime when the market is more economically favorable. Foliar-applied PGRsare routinely used to improve fruit set, reduce June drop or to preventpre-harvest drop to increase yield. PGR sprays are applied to increasefruit size directly by stimulating cell division. Application of a PGRthat reduces the number of flowers formed or promotes flower or fruitabscission increases fruit size indirectly by decreasing fruit number.PGRs have been used as both pre- and post-harvest treatments to hastenor slow the ripening process, color development, and maturation ofspecific tissues to improve the quality of the product sold in themarket. An emerging use of PGRs is for overcoming the adverse effects ofabiotic stresses. Surprisingly, these successes have been achieved witha modest number of commercial PGRs that are members of or impact thesynthesis of one of five classic groups: auxins, cytokinins,gibberellins, abscisic acid and ethylene.

However, as many PGRs are synthetic chemical compounds that mimic theeffects of natural plant hormones, they are subject to regulation underthe Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, administered bythe United States Environmental Protection Agency. In addition to theregulatory hurdles faced by PGRs, their use is not favorably received bya growing segment of consumers who prefer organic produce. As such, whatthe art needs are compositions and methods that employ natural compoundsto increase crop production.

SUMMARY

Described are compositions and methods to increase bud break in order toincrease aspects of one or both of plant vegetative and reproductivegrowth, by use of a natural metabolite. In particular, the presentdisclosure provides a natural metabolite either alone or as part of afertilizer blend to increase crop production. Additionally the presentdisclosure provides a natural metabolite in combination with one or bothof a plant growth regulator and a biostimulant to increase cropproduction. The present disclosure further provides a natural metabolitethat, depending on use, might itself be labeled a nutritionalsupplement, a biostimulant or a plant growth regulator.

The present disclosure provides methods of increasing crop production,comprising administering to a crop plant a composition comprising aneffective amount of a purified natural compound to increase the cropproduction of the crop plant, wherein the natural compound is selectedfrom the group consisting of adenosine, an adenosine phosphate, inosine,an inosine phosphate, adenine, hypoxanthine, xanthine, and combinationsthereof. In other embodiments, the natural compound is selected from thegroup consisting of uridine, uridine monophosphate, uridine diphosphate,uridine triphosphate, and uracil. In some preferred embodiments, thenatural compound comprises 9-beta-D-adenosine. In some preferredembodiments, the natural compound comprises one or more of the groupconsisting of adenosine monophosphate, adenosine diphosphate, adenosinetriphosphate, inosine, inosine monophosphate, inosine diphosphate,inosine triphosphate, adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine. In somepreferred embodiments, the composition further comprises one or more ofa fertilizer, a plant growth regulator, a biostimulant, and a bioactiveagent (e.g., insecticide, fungicide, bactericide, and/or acaricide). Ina subset of these embodiments, the plant growth regulator comprises oneor more of TIBA, IPA, and 6-BA. In other embodiments, the plant growthregulator is provided in Vermicompost tea. In some embodiments, thefertilizer is selected from the group consisting of nitrogen, potassium,magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, sulfur, iron, boron, chlorine,manganese, zinc, copper, molybdenum, nickel, cobalt, silicon, selenium,and combinations thereof. The present disclosure provides methods inwhich the crop plant is a perennial fruit plant. In some preferredembodiments, the perennial fruit plant is selected from the groupconsisting of apple, apricot, avocado, citrus (e.g., orange, lemon,grapefruit, tangerine, lime and citron), peach, pear, pecan, pistachio,and plum. In some embodiments, the composition is administered at one ormore of the following times: (i) at 10% anthesis, (ii) at full bloom,(iii) 30 days after 75% petal fall, (iv) at maximum peel thickness ofthe fruit, and (v) greater than 60 days, preferably greater than 75, 90,105, 120, 135, 150, 175 or 180 days (from 75 to 180 days) before fruitharvest. In some embodiments, the crop plant is an annual crop plant. Ina subset of these embodiments, the annual crop plant is selected fromthe group consisting of celery, spinach, and tomato. In some preferredembodiments, the composition is administered, one, two, three, four,five, six or seven times per week. The present disclosure providesmethods in which the composition is administered by a technique selectedfrom the group consisting of foliar spray, irrigation, and trunkinjection. In some embodiments, the increased crop production comprisesan increase in reproductive growth. In a subset of these embodiments,the increase in reproductive growth comprises an increase of one or moreof the group consisting of number of fruiting shoots, number of fruit,fruit size, and total yield of fruit (per plant or per plot basis). Insome preferred embodiments, the increase in reproductive growthcomprises an increase in yield of commercially valuable large fruit(yield of mammoth, jumbo and large fruit) on a per plant or per plotbasis. In some embodiments the increase in fruit size comprises one ormore of the following: an increase in average fruit diameter per cropplant (of at least 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, or 90%, orbetween 10 to 90% that of an untreated crop plant); an increase inaverage fruit weight per crop plant (of at least 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%,50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, or 90%, or between 10 to 90% that of an untreatedcrop plant); and an increase in total fruit weight per crop plant (of atleast 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, or 90%, or between 10 to90% that of an untreated crop plant). In some embodiments, the increasedcrop production comprises an increase in vegetative growth, wherein theincrease in vegetative growth comprises an increase in one or both ofnumber of leaves and number of vegetative shoots (per plant or per plotbasis). In some embodiments, the adenosine is administered as abiostimulant, a nutritional supplement, or a plant growth regulator.

Additionally, the present disclosure provides a composition comprising:(i) a purified natural compound, and (ii) a fertilizer, wherein thenatural compound is selected from the group consisting of adenosine, anadenosine phosphate, inosine, an inosine phosphate, adenine,hypoxanthine, xanthine, and combinations thereof. In other embodiments,the natural compound is selected from the group consisting of uridine,uridine monophosphate, uridine diphosphate, uridine triphosphate, anduracil. In some preferred embodiments, the natural compound comprises9-beta-D-adenosine. In some preferred embodiments, the natural compoundcomprises one or more of the group consisting of adenosinemonophosphate, adenosine diphosphate, adenosine triphosphate, inosine,inosine monophosphate, inosine diphosphate, inosine triphosphate,adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine. In some embodiments, the fertilizeris selected from the group consisting of nitrogen, potassium, magnesium,phosphorus, calcium, sulfur, iron, boron, chlorine, manganese, zinc,copper, molybdenum, nickel, cobalt, selenium, silicon and combinationsthereof. Also, the present disclosure provides compositions whichfurther comprise a bioactive agent (e.g., insecticide, fungicide,bactericide, and/or acaricide).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a timeline depicting the flowering, fruit set and fruitdevelopment of the Navel orange over a one-year period. Trees transitionfrom vegetative to reproductive (floral) development from late Novemberthrough January, with irreversible commitment to flowering(determinancy) occurring between mid-December and mid-January. Floweringand flower abscission may occur between February and mid-May or June.Fruit set may occur between February and July. Fruit abscission mayoccur between April and August. Fruit development unfolds in threestages. During Stage I, which may occur between February and July, fruitsize slowly increases. The end of Stage one is marked by maximumthickness of the peel and has been experimentally shown to occur betweenapproximately June 10 and July 26 for both navel and Valencia orange andmandarins from as far south as Irvine California north to MaderaCalifornia, occurring earlier within this period for cultivars with athinner peel, i.e., mandarin<Valencia<navel and earlier within acultivar during an on-crop year than an off-crop year. During Stage II,which may occur between June and November, fruit size rapidly increases.During Stage III, which may occur between November and January of thefollowing year, is a maturation stage wherein the increase in fruit sizeslows down again. Stages I and II (early fruit drop and June fruit dropperiod, respectively) are the critical period for fruit retention andincreasing yield. The end of Stage I through Stage II is the criticalperiod for increasing fruit size. Pre-harvest may occur betweenSeptember and December, while harvest may occur from December until aslate as June of the following year. FIG. 1 is based on 25-year-old‘Washington’ navel orange trees on Troyer citrange rootstock atRiverside, Calif.

FIG. 2 is a timeline depicting the flowering, fruit set and fruitdevelopment of the ‘Hass’ avocado in California over approximately a1.5-year period. The ‘Hass’ avocado in California transitions fromvegetative to reproduction development (inflorescence initiation) at theend of July beginning of August. Flower initiation may occur betweenNovember until January of the following year. Flowering may occurbetween March and May. Pollination and fertilization may occur betweenMarch and June. Fruit set may occur between March and mid-June to earlyJuly. Early fruit drop may occur between March and mid-June to earlyJuly; June drop occurs from mid-June to early July through August. Fruitdevelopment unfolds in three stages. During Stage I, which may occurbetween April and mid-June-early July, fruit size slowly increases.During Stage II, which may occur between mid-June-early July throughNovember, fruit size rapidly increases. During Stage III, the fruitcontinue to undergo cell division and to accumulate dry matter and oilcontent as part of maturation, which continues through harvest (20.8%dry matter content is legal maturity) the following year. The criticalperiod for fruit retention and increasing yield is between March andAugust. The critical period for increasing fruit size is mid-June toearly July through November and again late March to early April throughto harvest the following year. Harvest may occur between February untilfall, wherein the main pick occurs between May and July. FIG. 2 is basedon San Diego—Riverside environmental conditions.

Tomato fruit growth also proceeds through the same three stages of fruitdevelopment. In addition, the three stages of tomato fruit developmenthave the same associated fruit drop periods: Stage I of fruitdevelopment, early fruit drop; Stage II of fruit development, June fruitdrop period; and Stage III of fruit development, pre-harvest fruit drop.

All crops (annual, biennial or perennial; vegetable, fruit, nut, grain,forage or ornamental) have stages of phenology that can be targeted fortreatment with foliar-, soil- or irrigation-applied, and in the case oftree crops, trunk injected, nutritional supplements, fertilizers orplant growth regulators to increase the number, size and total yield ofthe marketable crop (organ or entire plant).

Definitions

To ensure a complete understanding of this disclosure, the followingdefinitions are provided:

The term “natural metabolite” as used herein refers to a substanceexisting in nature that is involved in metabolism (e.g., product of ornecessary for metabolism). In some embodiments, the natural metaboliteis adenosine. Similarly, the term “natural compound” as used hereinrefers to a substance existing in nature, albeit whether the isolatedcompound is produced biologically or chemically. For the sake ofsimplicity, the terms “natural metabolite” and “natural compound” areused interchangeably herein. In some preferred embodiments the naturalcompound is: a purine nucleoside (e.g., adenosine, inosine); amonophosphate, diphosphate or triphosphate of a purine nucleoside (e.g.,AMP, ADP, ATP, IMP, IDP, ITP); or a purine base (e.g., adenine,hypoxanthine, xanthine). In preferred embodiments, the naturalmetabolite comprises adenosine. In preferred embodiments, the purinenucleoside comprises or consists essentially of the D stereoisomer(e.g., 9-beta-D-adenosine, 9-beta-D-inosine).

As used herein, the term “purified” refers to a metabolite (e.g.,adenosine or the like) that is removed from its natural environment(e.g., isolated or separated). “Purified” compounds are at least 50%free, preferably 75% free, more preferably at least 90% free, and mostpreferably at least 95% (e.g., 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99%) free fromother components with which they are naturally associated.

The term “nutritional supplement” as used herein refers to a compositioncomprising one or more basal metabolites needed for normal growth ofplants, and which are in a form readily useable by plants. In somepreferred embodiments, the nutritional supplement comprises the naturalmetabolite adenosine. In some preferred embodiments, the adenosine is9-beta-D-adenosine. In other preferred embodiments the nutritionalsupplment comprises the natural metabolite adensoine in combination withpyrimidine nucleosides, bases or nucleotides, amino acids, organicacids, anti-oxidants, sugars and vitamins, enzyme cofactors.

The term “fertilizer” as used herein refers to one or more of the 17nutritional elements essential for plant and fruit growth and seedproduction, and any of several elements shown to be beneficial for plantgrowth. Fertilizers may be added to the soil of crops, as liquids orsolids, for uptake by plant roots (e.g. soil-applied,irrigation-applied) or applied to the canopy of the plant for uptakethrough leaves, inflorescences, flowers, fruit, and buds. Fertilizersmay be organic (i.e. composed of decayed plant or animal matter) orinorganic (i.e. composed of single or multiple chemicals and minerals).Fertilizers may include, in varying proportions, the essential elements:nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, sulfur, magnesium, boron,chlorine, manganese, iron, zinc, copper, molybdenum, and nickel.Fertilizers may also include the beneficial elements cobalt, silicon,selenium, and chromium. Urea (e.g. low-biuret urea) is an example of apreferred nitrogen fertilizer.

The terms “plant growth regulator” and “PGR” as used herein refer to asynthetic chemical analog of a naturally occurring plant hormone that isapplied to mimic the effects of plant hormones. The naturally occurringplant hormones generally fall under one of five classes: auxin,gibberellin (GA), cytokinin, ethylene, and abscisic acid (ABA). Plantgrowth regulators include but are not limited to 2,3,5-triiodobenzoicacid (TIBA); 9-hydroxyflorene-9-carboxylic acid (HFCA);2-(4-chlorophenoxy)-2-methylpropionic acid (clofibric acid);4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid (4-CPA); 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid(2,4-D); 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T);3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridyloxyacetic acid (3,5,6-TPA);4-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)butyric acid (2,4-DB);tris[2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)ethyl]phosphite (2,4-DEP);2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)propionic acid (dichlorprop);2-(2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy)propionic acid (fenoprop); 1-naphthaleneaceticacid (NAA); indole-3-butyric acid (IBA); indole-3-acetic acid (IAA);4-chloroindole-3-acetic acid (4-CI-IAA); 2-phenylacetic acid (PAA);2-methoxy-3,6-dichlorobenzoic acid (dicamba);4-amino-3,5,6-trichloropicolinic acid (tordon or picloram);α-(p-Chlorophenoxy)isobutyric acid (PCIB); 1-naphthol;(2-naphthyloxy)acetic acid; potassium naphthenate; sodium naphthenate;N-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-1H-purin-6-amine (2iP); N-benzyl-1H-purin-6-amine(benzyladenine and its riiboside); N-furfuryl-1H-purin-6-amine(kinetin); (E)-2-methyl-4-(9H-purin-6-ylamino)but-2-en-1-ol (zeatin);6-benzylaminopurine (6BA); isopentenyladenine and its riboside; zeatinand its riboside; 1-(2-chloro-4-pyridinyl)-3-phenylurea (CPPU),forchlorfenuron, and other synthetic diphenylurea-type cytokinins; cis,trans-abscisic acid; S-(+)-abscisic acid;(S)-5-(1-hydroxy-2,6,6-trimethyl-4-oxo-1-cyclohex-2-enyl)-3-methyl-penta-(2Z,4E)-dienoicacid; gibberellic acids (GA₃, GA₄, GA₇, GA₄₊₇, GA₉, GA_(4,7,9), GA₁);fluridone(1-methyl-3-phenyl-5-[3-trifluromethyl(phenyl)]-4-(1H)-pyridinone);abamine; 1-butanol; 1-methylcyclopropene (MCP); amnioethoxyvinylglycine;ethephon; and ethrel.

The term “biostimulant” as used herein refers to a compound orcomposition that is neither a fertilizer nor pesticide, but which whenapplied to a plant will enhance the health and growth of a plant. Theterm biostimulant encompasses but is not limited to pyrimidinenucleotides, nucleosides and bases, amino acids, organic acids, sugars,vitamins, enzyme cofactors, anti-oxidants, humic acid, fulvic acid, kelp(seaweed), and compost teas.

The term “crop production” as used herein refers to aspects of one orboth of vegetative growth (shoots, leaves) and reproductive growth(flowers, fruits, seeds). As such an increase in crop productionencompasses an increase in one or both of the quantity and size of theorgans of a plant, including but not limited to fruit, seeds/nuts,flowers, inflorescences, shoots, and leaves. The term “quantity” as usedherein refers to an increase in the number of plant organs (e.g., numberof vegetative shoots, number of leaves, number of reproductive [floral]shoots, number of inflorescences, number of flowers, number of fruit).The term “size” as used herein refers to the weight, length, area,diameter, circumference or volume of a plant organ, while the term“quantity” as used herein refers to number of plant organs. An increasein size encompasses an increase in one or more of: plant size (e.g.,height, width); shoot size (e.g., length, diameter, circumference); leafsize (e.g., length, width, area); and fruit size (e.g., diameter,circumference, volume, weight). In preferred embodiments, the increasein crop production is a net increase of at least 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%,50%, 75%, 85%, 95%, 100%, 150%, 200% in fruit production (e.g., numberof fruit [total, large, or commercially valuable] per crop plant, weightof fruit [total, large, or commercially valuable] per crop plant, ortotal yield of fruit per crop plant) as compared to the respectivevalues of untreated control plants. Crop production is generallyexpressed in: total kilograms of fruit per crop plant, average kilogramper fruit per crop plant, total number of fruit per crop plant, averagenumber of fruit per crop plant, average millimeters in diameter perfruit, or in average grams per fruit.

The term “total yield” as used herein refers to the product of sizemultiplied by quantity of a plant organ. In preferred embodiments, theincrease in total yield is a net increase of at least 10%, 20%, 30%,40%, 50%, 75%, 100%, 150%, 200%, 250%, 300%, 350%, 400%, or 500% of thetotal yield of one or both of vegetative and reproductive growth ascompared to the value of untreated control plants.

The term “administer” as used herein refers to various ways in which acrop plant receives the compositions described herein (e.g., nutritionalsupplements, fertilizers, plant growth regulators, and combinationsthereof). Methods of administration include, but are not limited tofoliar spray, irrigation, soil application, soil injection, trunkinjection (including branch injection), and trunk paints (includingbranch paints). Foliar spraying, a technique of feeding plants, involvesdirectly applying the composition in liquid form to the canopy of theplant. Whereas leaves are typically the target of such applications,alternatively buds, inflorescences, flowers, and fruit might be thetarget of foliar sprays alone or in addition to leaves. In contrast,irrigation involves directly administering the composition to the rootzone for uptake by the plant roots. Trunk injection involves directlyadministering the composition to the plant trunk or branch. As known inthe art, trunk injection is a way to treat many different insect anddisease problems, as well as nutrient deficiencies, in an efficient andenvironmentally friendly way. Also, some trees are too large to spray,in areas too close to houses, parks, water courses, or otherenvironmentally sensitive areas where spraying is not a viable option,or the root system may be inaccessible for soil systemic treatments,making trunk injection the best or only option available in such cases.

The term “effective amount” as used herein refers to that amount of asubstance that is necessary to produce a desired effect. In someembodiments, an effective amount of adenosine is that amount ofadenosine that increases fruit size (circumference, weight and/orvolume) when administered in a suitable manner to a crop plant (e.g.,appropriate formulation of adenosine applied at an appropriate timegiven the stage of fruit development). In some embodiments, an effectiveamount of adenosine is that amount of adenosine that increases one orboth of shoot number and fruit number when administered in a suitablemanner to a crop plant (e.g., appropriate formulation of adenosineapplied at an appropriate time given the stage of fruit development).Typically, an effective amount of adenosine administered to a crop plantby foliar spray is between about 0.023 kg/acre to 0.189 kg/acre (e.g.,25 mg/L applied in 950 L of water per acre to 100 mg/L applied in 1900 Lof water per acre). Typically, an effective amount of adenosineadministered to a crop plant by irrigation is a total of 0.35 μg to 35μg per plant over a 3-month growing period or 1.4 mg/4000 plants/acre140 mg/4000/acre through a 3-month growing season. Typically, aneffective amount of adenosine administered to a crop plant by trunkinjection is between 250 mg to 2500 mg per tree per application. At adensity of 200 trees per acre and a dose of 1 gram per tree, 0.2 kgadenosine per acre is used applied in an exemplary application.

The terms “bud break” and “budburst” as used herein refer to thephenomenon whereby a dormant bud resumes growth, resulting in enhancedvegetative or reproductive shoot growth. A dormant bud refers to budthat is capable of growth but which is not growing due to external orendogenous factors. However, not all shoots develop from a dormant bud.Buds can develop de novo contemporaneously with the main axis of theshoot. The phenomenon whereby these buds are formed and grow to increasevegetative and reproductive shoot growth is also “bud break” and“budburst”.

The term “maximum peel thickness” as used herein refers to the period atthe end of the cell division stage of fruit (e.g. citrus) development.

The term “anthesis” as used herein refers to a period during which aflower is opening (e.g., undergoing anther dehiscence). The term 10%anthesis, 60% anthesis etc, refers to percentage of flowers that haveundergone anthesis in the southwest quadrant of the tree.

The term “full bloom” as used herein refers to a period in a plant'sbloom cycle in which ˜50% of the flower buds are open.

The term “petal fall” as used herein refers to the period in which 75%of flowers have undergone petal drop in the northeast quadrant of thetree.

The term “canopy” as used herein refers to components of a plant thatare above the level of the soil, with the exception of the trunk. Assuch, the term canopy encompasses branches, leaves, inflorescences,flowers, buds and fruit.

The term “crop plant” as used herein generally refers to cereal,legumes, forage crops, stem and leaf crops, tuber, corn, bulb and rootcrops, fruit and seed vegetables, fruit and nut crops, beverage crops,oil, fat and wax crops, spices, perfumes and flavorings, andornamentals, forest and fiber crops. Crop plants include, but are notlimited to rice, wheat, corn, barley, oats, sorghum, rye, millet,soybean, peanut, beans, broad bean, pea, chickpea or garbanzo, blackeyed pea, lentil, pigeon pea, guar, alfalfa, clover, bird's foottrefoil, vetch, sweet clover, lespedeza, lupine, sorghum-sudan, Kentuckybluegrass, brome grass, timothy, orchard grass, fescua, Bermuda grass,dallies grass, bahia grass, ryegrass, bent grass, sugar cane, artichoke,asparagus, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, celery, chard, Chinesecabbage, collards, endive, kohlrabi, lettuce, parsley, rhubarb, spinach,potato, cassava, sweet potato, beets, taro, carrot, horseradish,Jerusalem artichoke, onion, parsnip, radish, rutabaga, salsify, turnip,yam, tomato, eggplant, curcurbits, okra, pepper, citrus (including sweetorange, mandarin orange, lemon, limes, grapefruit), grape, banana,apple, stone fruits (e.g. apricot, nectarines, peach, plum), blueberry,raspberry, blackberry, mulberry, brambles, cranberry, currant, pear,avocado, cashew, coconut, date, fig, guava, litchi, maracuja, mango,olive, papaya, pineapple, pomegranate, almond, brazil nut, filberts,macadamia, pecan, pistachio, walnuts, sunflower, coffee, tea, cacao,cola, hops, safflower, coconut, African oil palm, castor bean, rape,sesame, sunflower, linseed, tung, soybean, carnauba, candelilla, jojoba,black pepper, cinnamon, clove, vanilla, mint, oregano, allspice, anise,angelica oil, mustard, sage, ginger, rose oil, bergamot, camphor,cananga, citronella grass, eucalyptus, geranium oil, lavandula,rosemary, thyme, turpentine, cotton, flax, hemp, Christmas trees(various conifers), ornamental evergreens, rose, chrysanthemum,carnation, iris, azalea and rhododendron.

The term “crop plant” encompasses annuals, biennials, and perennials. Aperennial plant lives for more than two years. In contrast, an annualplant germinates, flowers, and dies in one year; while a biennial plantcompletes its life cycle in two years. The embodiments in the presentdisclosure apply to all crop plants.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Described are compositions and methods to increase aspects of one orboth of plant vegetative and reproductive growth, by use of a naturalmetabolite. In particular, the present disclosure provides a naturalmetabolite either alone or as part of a fertilizer blend to increasecrop production. Additionally the present disclosure provides a naturalmetabolite in combination with one or both of a plant growth regulatorand a biostimulant to increase crop production. In some embodiments, thenatural metabolite comprises one or more of adenosine, adenosinephosphates (AMP, ADP, ATP) inosine, inosine phosphates (IMP, IDP, ITP)adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine. In some preferred embodiments thenatural metabolite comprises adenosine. In some preferred embodiments,adenosine comprises or consists essentially of the D stereoisomer (e.g.,9-beta-D-adenosine). In the detailed description below, exemplarymethods and compositions comprising 9-beta-D-adenosine are provided.However, the present disclosure is not so limited and as such othersuitable compositions and methods for increasing crop productioncomprise adenosine phosphates, inosine, inosine phosphates, adenine,hypoxanthine and xanthine in addition to or instead of adenosine. Insome preferred embodiments, inosine comprises or consists essentially ofthe D-sterioisomer (e.g., 9-beta-D-inosine).

I. Methods of Increasing Crop Production

The present disclosure provides methods for increasing crop production,which involves increasing bud break resulting in increased production ofone or both of vegetative and reproductive shoot numbers byadministering to the crop plant a composition comprising a naturalmetabolite. In some embodiments, the natural metabolite comprises one ormore of adenosine, adenosine phosphates (AMP, ADP, ATP) inosine, inosinephosphates (IMP, IDP, ITP) adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine. In someembodiments the composition is intended for use as a nutritionalsupplement, while in other embodiments, the composition is intended foruse as a plant growth regulator or as a biostimulant. The presentdisclosure is compatible with the standard practices of the tomato,pepper, strawberry, ornamental vegetative and flowering herbaceous orwoody plants, and other vegetable, grains, spice, forage and annual,biennial and perennial fruit and seed crop industries.

Previous investigators have shown that administration of AMP to cottonseed was effective in increasing seed germination (U.S. Pat. No.4,209,316). In contrast, the present disclosure does not increase cropproduction as a consequence of enhancing germination. Moreover inpreferred embodiments, the present disclosure comprises theadministration of adenosine, as opposed to AMP.

The use of 1-tricontanol or 9-beta-L-adenosine has been reported toimprove the quality of a harvested plant part (U.S. Pat. No. 5,217,738).In some instances this involved increasing the sugar to acid ratio of aharvested fruit or vegetable. In further reports, 9-beta-L-adenosine wasadministered to seedlings to increase dry weight or to plants oncewithin 60 days of fruit or vegetable harvest to improve firmness orstorage stability (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,009,698 and 5,234,898). In contrast,the present disclosure involves the administration of a compositioncomprising a natural metabolite (adenosine or the like, preferably9-beta-D-adenosine) to a crop plant prior to harvest of the fruit orvegetable. Moreover, the present disclosure involves increasing cropproduction by increasing bud break, as opposed to generally increasingplant growth (e.g., vegetative shoot length). In preferred embodiments,the present disclosure involves repeated administration of the naturalmetabolite and/or administration at a defined stage(s) of plant growth.As such the compositions and methods of the present disclosure differsignificantly from the patents referred to above.

A. Methods of Increasing Tomato Production

Exemplary methods for increasing the production of tomatoes are providedin Example 1 and briefly summarized below. In some embodiments,adenosine is applied to tomatoes through the irrigation in a sufficientamount of water to move the material into the root zone approximatelyonce every day, once every other day, once every 7 days, or once every10 days to provide 0.35 μg to 35 μg per plant over a 3-month growingperiod or 1.4 mg/4000 plants/acre 140 mg/4000/acre through a 3-monthgrowing season. In further embodiments, adenosine is applied as a foliarspray once every 7 to 10 days to provide 0.35 μg per plant or 35 pg perplant over a 3-month growing period or 1.4 mg/4000 plants/acre 140mg/4000/acre through a 3-month growing season. In additionalembodiments, adenosine is applied at key stages of plant phenology(e.g., just prior to the initiation of flowering, during full bloom,during fruit set [Stage I of fruit development], during the period ofexponential increase in fruit size [(Stage II of fruit development andalso the June fruit drop period] or during fruit set [Stage I of fruitdevelopment] and again just prior to or during the period of exponentialincrease in fruit size (Stage II of fruit development and also the Junefruit drop period) at 2.5 mg/L or 50 mg/L or 100 mg/L in sufficientgallons of water per acre to provide good canopy coverage. The methodsof the present disclosure for increasing tomato production throughadministration of a composition comprising adenosine are expected tocompare favorably to untreated controls, as well as standard availablepractices (e.g., vermicompost tea applied at 3 gallons/acre, 3times/month over the 3-month growing season).

B. Methods of Increasing Mandarin Production

Exemplary methods for increasing production of citrus are provided inExample 2 and briefly summarized below. In some embodiments, the methodsinvolve administering a composition comprising adenosine by foliar sprayto mandarin trees. Suitable methods involving canopy application are asfollows: (1) adenosine (25 mg/L) administered at maximum peel thickness;(2) adenosine (25 mg/L) administered when fruit are 17-20 mm indiameter; (3) adenosine (50 mg/L) administered when fruit are 17-20 mmin diameter; (4) adenosine (50 mg/L) administered at maximum peelthickness; (5) adenosine (100 mg/L) administered when fruit are 17-20 mmin diameter; (6) adenosine (100 mg/L) administered at maximum peelthickness; (7) adenosine (50 mg/L) administered at 75% petal fall) and(8) adenosine (50 mg/L) administered at 75% petal fall and at maximumpeel thickness. The treatments can be applied in 100 to 500 gallons peracre. Unless otherwise stated, the exemplary treatments are applied in250 gallons of water per acre. Thus adenosine is applied in amounts fromabout 18.93-23.66 g per acre to about 75.71-94.63 g per acre. There are15 individual tree replicates per treatment in test methods. At harvest,fruit production is assessed (kg fruit per tree, fruit number per treeand fruit quality).

The methods of the present disclosure for increasing citrus productionthrough administration of a composition comprising adenosine areexpected to compare favorably to untreated controls, as well as standardavailable practices. In particular an increase in citrus production isachievable by increasing fruit retention, and thus fruit number with orwithout an effect on fruit size. Standard available practices formandarin trees are as follows: (1) GA₃ (PROGIBB® 4% from ValentBiosciences Corp.) at 1-8 fluid oz per 100 gallons of water, using asufficient number of gallons for good coverage; 1-2 applications from50% petal fall to 3 weeks after petal fall of mandarins and mandarinhybrids; (2) 2,4-D (CITRUSFIX® from AmVac Corp.) 0.67 oz (3.34 lbs 2,4-Disopropylester per gallon) per 100 gallons of water at 500 gallons peracre 21 to 35 days after 75% petal fall of mandarins and mandarinhybrids; and (3) 1% low-biuret urea applied at maximum peel thickness.PROGIBB® must be used with caution as it may result in more fruit setthan is desirable, resulting in a reduction in final fruit size and leafdrop in trees under stress. Adenosine in a preferred embodiment does notrequire this caution and its efficacy in increasing production ofcommercially valuable fruit is not as sensitive to crop load (alternatebearing) as that of methods comprising administration of GA₃. Similarly,CITRUSFIX® must be used with caution as it may cause fruit dryness. Thisis particularly relevant to ‘Nules’ and other cultivars that tend to bedry or granulated, and cannot be used on trees less than 6 years old andcannot be used during a flush of leaf growth. Adenosine in a preferredembodiment does not require these cautions. Additionally, adenosine hadno negative effects on mandarin fruit quality and in one of the threeyears of the research described in Example 2, had the desirable effectsof reducing acidity and increasing the ratio total of soluble solids(sugars) to acid (See, Table 2-5).

The present disclosure is compatible with the standard practices of thecitrus, avocado, pistachio and other evergreen and deciduous tree fruitand nut crops. Although plant growth regulators, biostimulants,nutritional supplements and fertilizers are all subject to varyingdegrees of regulation by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency andstate agencies, the active ingredients of the disclosure are readilyavailable natural metabolites. Moreover, since 6-benzyladenine (6-BA)has been previously exempted from the requirement of a residue tolerancefor use on apple and pistachio, adenosine and precursors thereof shouldbe similarly exempted for use on these and other crops. Moreover, AMP,for which adenosine is a precursor, is a GRAS (Generally Recognized asSafe) compound.

Further methods for increasing production by Clementine mandarin treesby canopy application are as follows: (1) adenosine (25 mg/L)administered at 10% anthesis; (2) adenosine (25 mg/L) administered atfull bloom; (3) adenosine (25 mg/L) administered 30 days after 75% petalfall; (4) adenosine (25 mg/L) administered at full bloom and 30 daysafter 75% petal fall; (5) adenosine (50 mg/L) administered at 10%anthesis; (6) adenosine (50 mg/L) administered at full bloom; (7)adenosine (50 mg/L) administered 30 days after 75% petal fall; and (8)adenosine (50 mg/L) administered at full bloom and 30 days after 75%petal fall to increase fruit set. These methods are expected to comparefavorably to untreated controls, as well as standard availablepractices: (9) GA₃ (PROGIBB® 4% from Valent BioSciences Corp.) at 1-8fluid oz per 100 gallons of water, using a sufficient number of gallonsfor good coverage; 1-2 applications from 50% petal fall to 3 weeks afterpetal fall of mandarins and mandarin hybrids. Unless otherwise stated,all treatments are in two gallons of water per tree. There are 15individual tree replicates per treatment in test methods. At harvest,fruit production is assessed (kg fruit per tree, fruit number per treeand fruit quality).

C. Methods of Increasing Avocado Production

Exemplary methods for increasing the production of avocados are providedin Example 3 and briefly summarized below. In some embodiments, themethods involve administering a composition comprising adenosine bytrunk injection of ‘Hass’ avocado trees. The following treatments wereinjected (1 g per tree) in mid-January into the trunk of on-crop ‘Hass’avocado trees in a commercial orchard in Irvine, Calif.: (1) adenosine(Sigma Chemical); (2) 6-BA (Sigma Chemical); (3) GA₃ (PROGIBB 40%,Valent BioSciences Corp.); (4) TIBA (Sigma Chemical); and (5) TIBA plusadenosine. Each material was supplied at the rate of 1 g per treedissolved in 50-60 ml distilled water using two plastic syringes pertree. In test methods there were five individual tree replicates pertreatment, including (6) untreated on-crop control trees. For each tree,branches (12 inches long), 1 with fruit and 1 branch without fruit ineach of the four tree quadrants, were tagged. During spring bloom, thenumber of floral shoots (indeterminate and determinate), vegetativeshoots and inactive buds on each tagged branch were counted. The methodsof the present disclosure for increasing avocado production throughadministration of a composition comprising adenosine are expected tocompare favorably to untreated controls, as well as foliar or soilapplied fertilization strategies. At present only one plant growthregulator, naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) to inhibit shoot growth afterpruning, is registered for use on avocado in the United States. From theresults presented in Table 3-1, the use of adenosine to increase cropproduction is contemplated to compare favorably to the use of plantgrowth regulators in other deciduous fruit crops. In particular anincrease in avocado production is achievable by increasing bud break,which increases flower number and fruit number and by increasing flowerand fruit retention. Other suitable methods for administration ofcompositions comprising adenosine to avocado trees include use of afoliar spray to 25 to 50 mg/L in 250 to 500 gallons of water per acreapplied at (1) full bloom/anthesis; or (2) when fruit are 17-20 mm indiameter, just prior to the exponential increase in fruit size [lateJune to early July].

II. Compositions for Increasing Crop Production

The present disclosure provides compositions comprising a naturalmetabolite for increasing crop production, which includes increasingaspects of one or both of vegetative and reproductive growth. In someembodiments, the natural metabolite comprises one or more of adenosine,adenosine phosphates (AMP, ADP, ATP) inosine, inosine phosphates (IMP,IDP, ITP) adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine. In the followingdescription unless otherwise indicated the specified months forapplication of the compositions of the present disclosure refer to asouthern California climate and season. One of skill in the art will beable to easily modify the disclosed technology for other growthconditions (e.g., southern hemisphere).

Adenosine (and adenine) is an ubiquitous metabolite that serves as aprecursor in all living organisms for the synthesis of DNA, RNA and ATP(energy currency of all living organisms). In plants, adenosine alsoserves as a precursor to the synthesis of cytokinins. As such, adenosineand the like may be properly categorized as nutritional supplements, andtherefore could be formulated for use by organic growers, who haveaccess to few growth enhancers. Additionally, adenosine can alsoincrease fruit retention, shoot development and spring bud break toincrease floral intensity and total yield. As such in some embodiments,the compositions comprising adenosine can be formulated for use as aplant growth regulator. The compositions of the present disclosure aresuitable for use to increase crop production of a variety of perennialand annual fruit crops including but not limited to citrus, avocado,pistachio, pecan, apricot, peach, plum, tomato, pepper, strawberry,raspberry and blueberry.

At present there are only two plant growth regulators registered for useon mandarins in California, gibberellic acid (GA₃) for increasing fruitset (retention of young fruit) and 2,4-dichlorooxyacetic acid (2,4-D)for increasing fruit size (UC Pest Management Guidelines,www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r107900111.html). Recent research (Chao andLovatt, Final Report to the Citrus Research Board, 2007) indicates that,in a light crop year (approximately 550 fruit per tree), it wasbeneficial to apply GA₃ early (starting at 60% bloom), frequently (fourapplications) and at a higher rate (15 or 25 mg GA₃/L) to successfullyincrease the total number of fruit per tree, but not total yield askilograms fruit per tree, and to increase the yield of commerciallyvaluable large size fruit (packing carton sizes large, jumbo andmammoth) as both kilograms and number per tree. In the on-crop year(approximately 1200 fruit per tree), it was better not to apply GA₃. Inthe on-crop years studied, GA₃ treatments either reduced both totalyield and yield of commercially valuable large size fruit (packingcarton sizes large, jumbo and mammoth) or had no effect. Use of 2,4-D toincrease fruit size of mandarins carries the caution that it can causefruit dryness in mandarin and mandarin hybrids, (e.g., especially‘Nules’ Clementine), which tends to have a low juice content, or inorchards prone to granulation (UC Pest Management Guidelines,www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r107900311.html). Therefore, there is room fornew technology that increases mandarin fruit size. Moreover, thecontinued registration of 2,4-D as a PGR is under review (FederalRegister, Vol. 73, No. 248, 2008). If the registration of 2,4-D iscancelled, a new PGR to increase size of navel and Valencia orange andmandarin fruit and prevent preharvest fruit drop will be essential.

Foliar fertilization can meet the plant's demand for a nutrient at timeswhen soil conditions (low temperature, low soil moisture, pH, salinity)render soil-applied fertilizers ineffective. Thus, foliar fertilizationis an effective method for correcting soil deficiencies and overcomingthe soil's inability to transfer nutrients to the plant. Nutrients,especially phosphate, potassium and trace elements can become fixed inthe soil and unavailable to plants. Applying nutrients directly toleaves, the major organ for photosynthesis, ensures that the plant'smetabolic machinery is not compromised by low availability of anessential nutrient. The key to achieving a yield benefit and netincrease in grower income is properly timing the foliar application offertilizer to key stages of crop phenology when nutrient demand islikely to be high or when soil conditions are known to restrict nutrientuptake. For citrus and avocado tree crops, this approach is in contrastto applying foliar fertilizers at the standard time of ⅓- to ⅔-leafexpansion (March), which targets foliage with a thin cuticle and largesurface area and only results in yields equal to those attained withsoil-applied fertilizer (Embleton and Jones, J Environ Quality,3:388-392, 1974; and Labanauskas et al., Proc 1st Intl Citrus Symp,3:1535-1542, 1969).

For citrus preferred foliar fertilization treatments for use incombination with foliar applied adenosine (or the like) include but arenot limited to the following treatments. (1) Nitrogen [23 lb/acre, urea(46% N, 0.25% biuret)] applied alone or with potassium and phosphorus[0.64 gal/acre, potassium phosphite (0-28-26)] in late winter (Januaryor February) when adenosine is used to increase spring bud break tosupport flower development, fruit set and total yield, without reducingfruit size, and to increase total soluble solids (TSS) and TSS to acidratio. (2) Zinc [1 lb/acre, ZnSO₄ (36% Zn)] at 10% anthesis in thesouthwest tree quadrant (SWTQ) when adenosine is used to increase fruitset and total yield, without reducing fruit size, since due to coldersoils Zn can be limiting at this time. (3) Boron [1.3 lb/acre, Solubor(20.5% B)] at 10% anthesis in the SWTQ when adenosine is used toincrease fruit set, total yield and yield of commercially valuable largesize fruit, since boron can be limiting in the ovary and can compromisefruit set even in plants that show adequate boron by standard tissueanalyses. (4) Potassium and phosphorus [0.49 gal/acre, potassiumphosphite (0-28-26)] in May and July when adenosine is applied at 75%petal fall in the NWTQ, 10 days after 75% petal fall in the NWTQ, orapplied at maximum peel thickness to obtain a synergistic effect inincreasing yield of commercially valuable large size fruit, withoutreducing total yield, and to increase TSS and TSS to acid ratio and tosupport summer vegetative shoot growth to increase inflorescence numberthe next spring and total yield the following year. (5) Nitrogen [23lb/acre, urea (46% N, 0.25% biuret)] at maximum peel thickness whenadenosine is applied at 75% petal fall in the NWTQ, 10 days after 75%petal fall in the NWTQ, or applied at maximum peel thickness to obtain asynergistic effect in increasing yield of commercially valuable largesize fruit, without reducing total yield, and to increase TSS and TSS toacid ratio and to support summer vegetative shoot growth to increaseinflorescence number the next spring and total yield the following year.(6) Potassium nitrate (25 lb KNO₃/acre) at dormancy (February),post-bloom (April) and exponential fruit growth (July-August) whenadenosine is applied at one or more of the preferred application timesto provide nitrogen and potassium to support growth of commerciallyvaluable large size fruit.

For pistachio, adenosine is applied with a foliar fertilizer at budswell to green tip for emerging inflorescences (late February to earlyMarch) to enhance flower nutrient levels (ovary and/or pollen) toincrease fruit (nut) set. Exemplary treatments include: (1) Nitrogen [6lbs/acre, urea (46% N, 0.25% biuret)]; (2) Nitrogen [6 lbs/acre, urea(46% N, 0.25% biuret)] combined with zinc [5 lb/acre, ZnSO₄ (36% Zn)];(3) Boron [5 lb/acre, Solubor (20.5% B)]; or (4) Nitrogen [6 lbs/acre,urea (46% N, 0.25% biuret)] combined with zinc [5 lb/acre, ZnSO₄ (36%Zn)] and boron [5 lb/acre]. Adenosine (or the like) is applied withfoliar fertilizer at ½ to ⅔ leaf expansion when leaves have a cuticlethin enough for nutrient uptake and sufficient surface area that theamount of nutrient taken up is large enough to impact tree physiologyand fruit (nut) set and nut size: (1) Zinc [2 lb/acre, ZnSO₄ (36% Zn)];(2) Nitrogen [6 lbs/acre, urea (46% N, 0.25% biuret)]; or (3) Zinc [2lb/acre, ZnSO₄ (36% Zn)] and nitrogen [6 lbs/acre, urea (46% N, 0.25%biuret)] combined. Adenosine (or the like) is applied with foliarfertilizer in early June, early July and mid-August to enhance kernelfilling: (1) Potassium [10 lb/acre, KTS (0-0-25-17S)]; (2) Potassium [10lb/acre, KNO₃ (13-0-38)]; (3) Nitrogen [6 lbs/acre, urea (46% N, 0.25%biuret)]; or (4) Potassium [10 lb/acre, KTS (0-0-25-17S)] and nitrogen[6 lbs/acre, urea (46% N, 0.25% biuret)] combined.

For avocado, suitable treatments comprising adenosine and a foliarfertilizer are as follows. (1) Boron applied at 1.45 lb in 200 gallonsof water per 110 trees per acre (1.63 kg B in 1869 L/ha) orurea-nitrogen at 50 lb (46-0-0, 0.25% biuret; 23 lb N) in 200 gallonswater per acre (25.8 kg N in 1869 L/ha) just prior to avocadoinflorescence expansion (cauliflower stage of inflorescence development)to increase the number of viable ovules and increased the number ofpollen tubes that reach the ovules (Jaganath and Lovatt, Acta Hort,1:181-184, 1998). (2) Potassium phosphite [Nutri-Phite, 0-28-26; 2.6quarts in 200 gallons water per acre (6 L Nutri-Phite in 1869 L/ha)] atthe cauliflower stage of inflorescence development (Gonzalez et al., inpress). Not all nutrients are taken up through the foliage of all cropspecies and, even if taken up, some nutrients are not phloem mobile.Whereas the developing inflorescence of the ‘Hass’ avocado takes upcanopy-applied fertilizers, leaves of the ‘Hass’ avocado, especiallyunder California growing conditions, do not take up many nutrientsefficiently. However, production benefits are obtained by properlytiming soil nitrogen applications at 25 lb nitrogen as ammonium nitrateper acre (56 kg/ha) to three critical stages of tree phenology: (1)anthesis-early fruit set and initiation of the vegetative shoot flush atthe apex of indeterminate floral shoots (about mid-April); (2) period ofrapid cell division and significant increase in fruit size (late June toearly July); and (3) inflorescence initiation (late July to earlyAugust). Adenosine (or the like) is administered as a soil/irrigationapplication, foliar application or trunk injection during one or more ofthe following time periods: (1) in late winter (January or February) toincrease spring bud break, floral intensity, fruit set and total yield;(2) at the cauliflower stage of inflorescence development or full bloomto increase fruit set and total yield; (3) at late June to early July toreduce June drop and increase fruit growth to increase fruit size andyield of commercially valuable large size fruit, reduce pre-harvestfruit drop and stimulate summer vegetative shoot growth to increase thenumber of inflorescences the next spring; and (4) early August toprevent pre-harvest, support summer shoot growth, and increase fruitgrowth of the current crop to increase fruit size and yield ofcommercially valuable large size fruit.

The natural metabolite (adenosine and the like) of the presentdisclosure may be formulated with one or more of a pH stabilizer, ananti-oxidant (or other compound for increasing shelf life), and abioactive agent (e.g., insecticide, fungicide, bactericide, and/oracaricide). In addition, the natural metabolite can be formulated in amixture with a carrier or, if necessary, other auxiliary agents to formany one of the standard types of preparations commonly used inagriculture, for example, a dry blend, granules, a wettable powder, anemulsion, an aqueous solution and the like.

Suitable solid carriers are clay, talc, kaolin, bentonite, terra abla,calcium carbonate, diatomaceous earth, silica, synthetic calciumsilicate, kieselguhr, dolomite, powdered magnesia, Fuller's earth,gypsum and the like. Solid compositions can also be in the form ofdispersible powders or grains, comprising, in addition to the naturalmetabolite, a surfactant to facilitate the dispersion of the powder orgrains in liquid.

Liquid compositions include solutions, dispersions or emulsionscontaining the natural metabolite (adenosine and the like) together withone or more surface-active agents (surfactants) such as wetting agents,dispersing agents, emulsifying agents, or suspending agents. In thoseapplications in which the compounds are applied as a foliar spray,surfactants are preferably used. Surfactants reduce the surface tensionin the spray droplet to ensure that the material applied spreads out andcovers the leaf surface rather than beading up. This facilitatesabsorption of the applied material into the plant. Surfactants can alsoaffect the uptake of materials directly by changing the viscosity andcrystalline structure of the waxes on the surface of the leaf or othertissues (Tu and Randall, Chapter 8-Adjuvants. In: Tu et al., [Eds.] WeedControl Methods Handbook: Tools and Techniques For Use In Natural Areas.The Nature Conservancy p. 219, 2001).

Generally, any number of surfactants may be used consistent with thepurpose of this constituent. For example the surfactant can comprise anonionic, anionic, cationic, or zwitterionic surfactant. The surfactantcan be present in the composition of the disclosure as formulated or,alternatively, the surfactants can be introduced during administrationto the plant. In such an instance, regardless of whether theadministration is conducted via automated or manual means, thesurfactant can be combined with the composition of the disclosure priorto, or co-dispensed separately. Cationic surfactants useful incompositions of the disclosure include but are not limited to amineethoxylates, amine oxides, mono- and dialkylamines, imidazoliniumderivatives, and alkylbenzyldimethylammonium halides. Nonionicsurfactants useful in the context of this disclosure are generallypolyether (also known as polyalkylene oxide, polyoxyalkylene orpolyalkylene glycol) compounds. More particularly, the polyethercompounds are generally polyoxypropylene or polyoxyethylene glycolcompounds. Anionic surfactants useful with the disclosure comprise, forexample, alkyl carboxylates, linear alkylbenzene sulfonates, paraffinsulfonates and secondary n-alkane sulfonates, sulfosuccinate esters andsulfated linear alcohols. Zwitterionic or amphoteric surfactants usefulwith the disclosure include but are not limited toalpha-N-alkylaminopropionic acids, n-alkyl-alpha-iminodipropionic acids,imidazoline carboxylates, amine oxides, sulfobetaines and sultaines.

Although the surfactant can be present in the composition in any usefulamount, in preferred embodiments, it is present in an amount from about0.01% to about 25%, more preferably from about 0.01% to about 10% andmore preferably still from about 0.05% to about 5%. A surfactant ispresent in the compositions of the disclosure in a useful amount when itfacilitates the dissolution of the natural metabolite, enhances itsuptake by the plant, and/or its effectiveness in inducing the desiredresponse. In a preferred embodiment, the surfactant is a polysorbate,which is present in an amount from about 0.05% to about 5%. In aparticularly preferred embodiment, the surfactant is polysorbate 20(polyoxyethylene 20 sorbitan monolaurate), which is present in thecomposition in an amount from about 0.05% to about 5%.

The compositions of the disclosure can also contain suspending agents.Suitable suspending agents are, for example, hydrophilic colloids, forexample polyvinylpyrollidone and sodium carboxymethylcellulose, and thevegetable gums, for example, gum acacia and gum tragacanth.

Aqueous solutions, dispersions or emulsions may be prepared bydissolving the natural metabolite (adenosine or the like) in water or anorganic solvent which can, if desired, contain one or more surfaceactive, sticking, wetting, dispersing, or emulsifying agents. Suitableorganic solvents are, for example, alcohols, hydrocarbons, oils andsulfoxides. In embodiments using alcohols, methanol, isopropyl alcohol,propylene glycol and diacetone alcohol are preferred. In embodimentsusing oils, petroleum oils are preferred. Of the sulfoxides,dimethylsulfoxide is preferred.

The compositions which are to be used in the form of aqueous solutions,dispersions or emulsions are generally supplied in the form of aconcentrate containing a high proportion of the natural metabolite(adenosine or the like), and the concentrate is then diluted with waterbefore use. These concentrates are usually required to withstand storagefor prolonged periods and after such storage, to be capable of dilutionwith water in order to form aqueous preparations that remain homogeneousfor a sufficient time to enable them to be applied by conventional sprayequipment. In general, concentrates can conveniently contain from 10 to60 percent by weight of the natural metabolite (adenosine or the like).

Exemplary bioactive compounds with which compositions of the presentdisclosure can be formulated include but are not limited to:insecticides such as abamectin, acephate, acetamiprid, avermectin,azadirachtin, azinphos-methyl, bifenthrin, binfenazate, buprofezin,carbofuran, chlorfenapyr, chlorfluazuron, chlorpyrifos,chlorpyrifos-methyl, chromafenozide, clothianidin, cyfluthrin,beta-cyfluthrin, cyhalothrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, cypermethrin,cyromazine, deltamethrin, diafenthiuron, diazinon, diflubenzuron,dimethoate, diofenolan, emamectin, endosulfan, esfenvalerate, ethiprole,fenothicarb, fenoxycarb, fenpropathrin, fenproximate, fenvalerate,fipronil, flonicamid, flucythrinate, tau-fluvalinate, flufenoxuron,fonophos, halofenozide, hexaflumuron, imidacloprid, indoxacarb,isofenphos, lufenuron, malathion, metaldehyde, methamidophos,methidathion, methomyl, methoprene, methoxychlor, monocrotophos,methoxyfenozide, nithiazin, novaluron, oxamyl, parathion,parathion-methyl, permethrin, phorate, phosalone, phosmet, phosphamidon,pirimicarb, profenofos, pymetrozine, pyridalyl. pyriproxyfen, rotenone,spinosad, sulprofos, tebufenozide, teflubenzuron, tefluthrin, terbufos,tetrachlorvinphos, thiacloprid, thiamethoxam, thiodicarb,thiosultap-sodium, tralomethrin, trichlorfon and triflumuron; fungicidessuch as acibenzolar, azoxystrobin, benomyl, blasticidin-S, Bordeauxmixture (tribasic copper sulfate), bromuconazole, carpropamid, captafol,captan, carbendazim, chloroneb, chlorothalonil, copper oxychloride,copper salts, cyflufenamid, cymoxanil, cyproconazole, cyprodinil,(S)-3,5-dichloro-N-(3-chloro-1-ethyl-1-methyl-2-oxopropyl)-4-methylbenzamide(RH 7281), diclocymet (S-2900), diclomezine, dicloran, difenoconazole,(S)-3,5-dihydro-5-methyl-2-(methylthio)-5-phenyl-3-(pheny-1amino)-4H-imidazol-4-one(RP 407213), dimethomorph, dimoxystrobin, diniconazole, diniconazole-M,dodine, edifenphos, epoxiconazole, famoxadone, fenamidone, fenarimol,fenbuconazole, fencaramid (SZX0722), fenpiclonil, fenpropidin,fenpropimorph, fentin acetate, fentin hydroxide, fluazinam, fludioxonil,flumetover (RPA 403397), fluquinconazole, flusilazole, flutolanil,flutriafol, folpet, fosetyl-aluminum, furalaxyl, furametapyr (S-82658),hexaconazole, ipconazole, iprobenfos, iprodione, isoprothiolane,kasugamycin, kresoxim-methyl, mancozeb, maneb, mefenoxam, mepronil,metalaxyl, metconazole, metominostrobin/fenominostrobin (SSF-126),myclobutanil, neo-asozin (ferric methanearsonate), oxadixyl,penconazole, pencycuron, probenazole, prochloraz, propamocarb,propiconazole, pyrifenox, pyraclostrobin, pyrimethanil, pyroquilon,quinoxyfen, spiroxamine, sulfur, tebuconazole, tetraconazole,thiabendazole, thifluzamide, thiophanate-methyl, thiram, tiadinil,triadimefon, triadimenol, tricyclazole, trifloxystrobin, triticonazole,validamycin and vinclozolin; nematocides such as aldicarb, oxamyl andfenamiphos; bactericides such as streptomycin; and acaricides such asamitraz, chinomethionat, chlorobenzilate, cyhexatin, dicofol,dienochlor, etoxazole, fenazaquin, fenbutatin oxide, fenpropathrin,fenpyroximate, hexythiazox, propargite, pyridaben and tebufenpyrad. Ageneral reference for these agricultural protectants is The PesticideManual, 12th Edition, Tomlin, Ed., British Crop Protection Council,Farnham, Surrey, United Kingdom, 2000.

Experimental

The following examples are provided in order to demonstrate and furtherillustrate certain preferred embodiments and aspects of the presentdisclosure, and are not to be construed as limited the scope thereof.

Abbreviations. To ensure a complete understanding of this disclosure,the following abbreviations are provided: ABA (abscisic acid); Ado(adenosine); 6-BA (benzylaminopurine or benzyladenine); 2,4-D(2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid); 2,4,5-T (2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyaceticacid); GA (gibberellin); GA₃ (gibberrillic acid); IAA (indole-3-aceticacid); IBA (indole-3-butyric acid); IPA (isopentenyladenine); NAA(1-naphthaleneacetic acid); TIBA (2,3,5-triiodobenzoic acid); PGR (plantgrowth regulator); and Veg (vegetative).

Statisical Analysis. All data were reported as mean number of shoots per100 nodes unless stated otherwise. Analysis of variance was used to testtreatment effects on vegetative and floral shoot growth, floralintensity as the production of leafless and leafy floral shoots ofmandarin and determinate and indeterminate floral shoots of avocado andvegetative shoots of both crop plants at bloom and yield of mandarinusing the General Linear Models procedure of the SAS statistical program(SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, N.C.). Means were separated using Fisher'sprotected LSD, Duncan's multiple range test or Dunnett's two-tailedT-test at P=0.05.

EXAMPLE 1 Administration of Adenosine by Irrigation to Increase TomatoProduction

This example describes the increase in fruit production by tomato plants(cv. Supersweet 100), achieved via application of adenosine byirrigation. Adenosine (9-beta-D-adenosine) obtained from Sigma ChemicalCo. (Catalog No. A9251) was applied in a sufficient amount of distilledwater to move the material into the root zone of ‘Supersweet 100’ tomatoplants. Plants receiving treatments 2 and 3 were treated once every 10days. Plants receiving treatments 4, 5, 6, and 7 were treated daily. Thetotal amount of cytokinin or adenosine received by plants in eachtreatment by the end of experiment (75 days after planting) is given inparenthesis in the Table 1-1 below. The IPA concentration of thevermicompost tea was determined by radioimmunoassay.

TABLE 1-1 Effect of adenosine, the cytokinins isopentenyladenine (IPA)and 6-benzyladenine (6- BA), and vermicompost tea on vegetative andreproductive growth of tomato plants # Main Shoot Tap Root # # # FruitLeaves (mm) (mm) Veg. shoots Fruiting shoots Fruit diameterTreatment^(y) average value per plant mm (1) Control  39 e^(x) 78.5026.50 12.20 e  3.80 e  8 c 14.98 d (2) Vermicompost  67 d 46.50 44.5023.40 d 10.20 d  9 c 19.36 c tea (0.049 μg IPA) (3) Vermicompost 107 ab70.00 24.75 34.20 b 17.60 a 17 a 21.87 b tea (0.49 μg IPA) (4) IPA  99abc 73.75 25.50 30.20 c 12.40 bc 13 ab 21.81 b (0.035 μg) (5) IPA  87 c81.00 20.25 30.80 c 11.60 cd 10 bc 19.92 c (0.35 μg) (6) 6-BA  92 bc74.50 21.00 31.00 bc 14.40 b  9 c 21.51 b (0.35 μg) (7) Adenosine 111 a74.00 28.00 38.00 a 17.60 a 15 a 24.13 a (0.35 μg) P-value  <.00010.1282 0.1081  <.0001  <.0001  0.0008  <.0001 ^(z)The experiment was arandomized complete block design with four replications per treatmentand seven treatments, plants were harvested at the end of 75 days.^(y)Treatments were applied in a sufficient amount of distilled water tomove the material into the root zone. Plants receiving treatments 2 and3 were treated once every 10 days. Plants receiving treatments 4, 5, 6,and 7 were treated daily. The total amount of cytokinin or adenosinereceived by plants in each treatment by the end of experiment (75 days)is given in parentheses. The IPA concentration of the vermicompost teawas determined by radioimmunoassay. ^(x)Means within a vertical columnfollowed by different letters are significantly different by Fisher'sProtected LSD at P = 0.05.

The data indicate that adenosine significantly increased the number oflateral vegetative shoots and lateral reproductive shoots, number ofleaves, number of fruit and diameter of fruit of tomato plants comparedto equal concentrations of 6-benzyladenine and isopentenyladenine.Adenosine, however, did not have a general effect on plant growth as itdid not significantly alter the length of the main shoot or the taproot. That the effective concentration of adenosine was higher than theeffective concentration of IPA is consistent with adenosine functioningas a nutritional supplement and not a PGR like IPA. The resultsdemonstrate the capacity of adenosine to increase crop production. Inthis example, adenosine stimulated bud break to increase lateralbranching and to increase the number of lateral vegetative shoots. Theeffect of adenosine in increasing bud break and increasing lateralbranching also had a very positive effect on increasing the number ofreproductive shoots, the number of flowers and the number of fruit set(retained). Adenosine resulted in a net increase in the number of fruitper plant of 87.5% over the untreated control. In addition to increasingfruit number, adenosine significantly increased the size of individualfruit (e.g., increased transverse diameter). Adenosine increased theaverage size of individual tomato fruit by 61% over that of fruit fromuntreated control plants. The effect of adenosine on shoot growthresulted in a significant increase in the number of leaves per plant.Adenosine treated plants had 2.85-fold more leaves than untreatedcontrol plants.

EXAMPLE 2 Administration of Adenosine by Foliar Spray to IncreaseMandarin Production

This example describes the increase in the number and yield ofcommercially valuable fruit of Clementine mandarin trees achieved bycanopy application of adenosine. Adenosine (9-beta-D-adenosine) obtainedfrom Sigma Chemical Co. (Catalog No. A9251) was applied (25 mg/L in 250gallons of water per acre; 23.66 g/acre) with a 400 psi handgun sprayerone time at maximum peel thickness, which marks the end of the celldivision stage of citrus fruit development, to ‘Fina Sodea’ Clementinemandarin trees. As shown in Table 2-1 below, application of adenosinesignificantly increased the 3-year cumulative number of fruit 57.16 to69.85 mm in diameter (packing carton sizes large and jumbo) andincreased the 3-year cumulative number of commercially valuable mandarinfruit in the combined pool for fruit of packing carton sizes large,jumbo and mammoth without reducing total yield (average number of fruitper tree) (P≦0.05). As shown in Table 2-2 below, application ofadenosine significantly increased the 3-year cumulative yield of fruit57.16 to 69.85 mm in diameter (packing carton sizes large and jumbo) andincreased the 3-year cumulative yield of commercially valuable mandarinfruit in the combined pool for fruit of packing carton sizes large,jumbo and mammoth without reducing total yield (average kilograms[quantity×size] per tree) (P≦0.05). These data were also significant(P≦0.05) when averaged across the 3 years of the experiment,establishing that adenosine had a positive effect each year. Adenosinedid not have a negative effect on fruit quality in any year of thestudy. In year three of the study, fruit from adenosine-treated treeshad significantly reduced juice acid (P=0.0163), which resulted in ahigher total soluble solids to acid ratio of the juice (P=0.0570)(Tables 2-4a-c).

TABLE 2-1 Effect of adenosine applied to the canopy of mandarin trees onfruit quantity Packing carton size^(z) Total Colossal Mammoth JumboLarge Medium Small Ma + J + L Treatment Total fruit no./tree Adenosine1529.3^(y) 5.64 22.89 128.25 a 360.93 a 497.05 417.12 512.07 a Control1467.0 6.78 26.94  86.53 b 292.66 b 493.79 431.69 406.14 b T-test NS NSNS * * NS NS * ^(z)Fruit size categories based on fruit transversediameters (mm): small (44.45-50.80), medium (50.81-57.15), large(57.16-63.50), jumbo (63.51-69.85), mammoth (69.86-76.20), colossal(76.21-82.55), and large + jumbo + mammoth (57.16-76.20). Ma + J + L isthe sum of mammoth, jumbo and large fruit. ^(y)Average fruit numbersfollowed by different letters are significantly different at P = 0.05.indicated by an asterisk or not significantly indicated by NS based onDunnett's two-tailed T-test.

TABLE 2-2 Effect of adenosine applied to the canopy of mandarin trees onfruit yield (quantity × mass) Packing carton size^(z) Total ColossalMammoth Jumbo Large Medium Small Ma + J + L Treatment Total kg/treeAdenosine 126.30^(y) 1.04 3.52 15.42 a 34.67 a 37.00 23.58 53.60 Control110.88 1.28 4.15 10.47 b 28.24 b 36.94 24.37 42.86 T-test NS NS NS * *NS NS * ^(z)Fruit size categories based on fruit transverse diameters(mm): small (44.45-50.80), medium (50.81-57.15), large (57.16-63.50),jumbo (63.51-69.85), mammoth (69.86-76.20), colossal (76.21-82.55), andlarge + jumbo + mammoth (57.16-76.20). Ma + J + L is the sum of mammoth,jumbo and large fruit. ^(y)Average weights followed by different lettersare significantly different at P = 0.05 indicated by an asterisk or notsignificantly different indicated by NS based on Dunnett's two-tailedT-test.

TABLE 2-3 Effect of adenosine applied to the canopy of mandarin trees onfruit value (cumulative income in U.S. dollars) Packing carton size^(z)Total^(y) Small Medium Large Jumbo Mammoth Ma + J + L Treatment US$/acrebased on 200 trees/acre Adenosine 8015.80 1497.80 2522.40 2584.10 a1149.50 a 262.10 3995.60 a Control 7264.50 1550.90 2518.60 2105.20 b 780.70 b 309.10 3195.00 b P-value 0.1179 0.8130 0.9088   0.0723  0.0737 0.6982   0.0645 Dunnett NS NS NS * * NS * ^(z)Fruit sizecategories based on fruit transverse diameters (mm): small(44.45-50.80), medium (50.81-57.15), large (57.16-63.50), jumbo(63.51-69.85), mammoth (69.86-76.20), and large + jumbo + mammoth(57.16-76.20). Fruit were packed by number (based on size) per 11 kgbox. Fruit count per box was: small, 44; medium; 34, large, 26; jumbo,20; and mammoth 15. Average US dollars per box (retail) of fruit of eachsize category was: small, $3.50; medium, $3.75; large, $4.10; jumbo,$4.10; mammoth, $4.10; Ma + J + L is the sum of mammoth, jumbo and largefruit. ^(y)Total is the sum of small, medium, large, jumbo, and mammothvalues. * Values differ significantly from that of the control based ontwo-tailed Dunnett's test at P = 0.05.

These data highlight the benefits of adenosine applied at maximum peelthickness. There was a statistically significant net increase in 3-yearcumulative yield of commercially valuable large fruit (57.16-76.20 mm indiameter) of 4,735 lbs/200 trees/acre. These data were also significantwhen averaged across the three years of the experiment using repeatedmeasures analysis, establishing that adenosine had a positive effecteach year. There was no reduction in total yield; the adenosine-treatedtrees had a numerical (non-significant) net increase of 12,460 fruit/200trees/acre/3 years, equaling 6,799 lbs fruit/200 trees/acre/3yrs.

Use of foliar-applied adenosine to increase fruit number and to increasethe yield (quantity×size) of commercially valuable fruit is expected tocompare favorably to untreated controls, as well as standard availablepractices: (1) GA₃ (PROGIBB® 4%, Valent BioSciences Corp.) at 1-8 fluidoz per 100 gallons of water, using a sufficient number of gallons forgood coverage; 1-2 applications from 50% petal fall to 3 weeks afterpetal fall of mandarins and mandarin hybrids; (2) 2,4-D (CITRUSFIX®AmVac Corp.) 0.67 oz (3.34 lbs 2,4-D isopropylester/gallon) per 100gallons of water at 500 gallons per acre 21 to 35 days after 75% petalfall of mandarins and mandarin hybrids; and (3) 1% low-biuret ureaapplied at maximum peel thickness. ProGibb® must be used with caution asit may result in more fruit set than is desirable thereby reducing finalfruit size, and leaf drop may occur in trees under stress. Adenosinedoes not require this caution and its efficacy in increasing yield ofcommercially valuable fruit is not as sensitive to crop load (alternatebearing) as that of GA₃. Similarly, CITRUSFIX® must be used with cautionas it can cause fruit dryness (especially in ‘Nules’ and other cultivarsthat tend to be dry or granulated). In addition, CITRUSFIX® cannot beused on trees less than 6 years old and cannot be used during a flush ofleaf growth. Again adenosine does not require these cautions. Adenosinedid not have negative effects on mandarin fruit quality. Moreover, inone of the three years of the research adenosine had the desirableeffects of reducing acidity and increasing the ratio total solublesolids (sugars) to acid.

EXAMPLE 3 Administration of Adenosine by Trunk Injection to IncreaseAvocado Production

This example describes the use of adenosine to increase spring bud breakof ‘Hass’ avocado trees to increase floral intensity and avocadoproduction. Increased bud break was achieved via trunk injection ofadenosine (9-beta-D-adenosine) obtained from Sigma Chemical Co. (CatalogNo. A9251), alone or with a plant growth regulator. The followingtreatments were injected (1 g/tree) in mid-January into the trunk ofon-crop ‘Hass’ avocado trees in a commercial orchard in Irvine, Calif.:(1) adenosine (Sigma); (2) 6-BA (Sigma); (3) GA₃ (ProGibb 40%, ValentBioSciences Corp.); (4) TIBA (Sigma); and (5) TIBA plus adenosine. Eachmaterial was supplied at the rate of 1 g per tree dissolved in 50 to 60ml distilled water using two plastic syringes per tree. There were fiveindividual tree replicates per treatment, including (6) untreatedon-crop control trees. For each tree, branches (12 inches long), 1 withfruit and 1 branch without fruit in each of the four tree quadrants,were tagged. During spring bloom, the number of floral shoots(indeterminate and determinate), vegetative shoots and inactive buds oneach tagged branch were counted.

TABLE 3-1 Effect of trunk injections on spring bloom of ‘Hass’ avocadotrees bearing an on-crop Determinate Indeterminate Floral Floral FloralFloral Floral (with fruit) (w/o fruit) Treatment Time No. of shoots per100 nodes On-crop control Jan  6 b^(z) 1 b 5  5 c 7 Ado Jan 10 ab 3 ab 7 8 abc 10 6-BA Jan  9 b 1 b 8  9 abc 9 GA₃ Jan  7 b 2 b 6  6 bc 8 TIBAJan  9 b 1 b 8 11 ab 8 Ado + TIBA Jan 15 a 8 a 7 12 a 16 P-value  0.06930.0789 0.2906  0.0793 0.1618 ^(z)Means within a column followed by adifferent letter are significantly different at specified P-value byFisher's Protected LSD Test.

Table 3-1 summarizes the effect of January adenosine and plant growthregulator (PGR) trunk injections on spring bloom of ‘Hass’ avocado treesbearing an on-crop. These results indicate that adenosine applied withTIBA as a single trunk injection to on-crop trees in January overcamethe inhibitory effect of the fruit on bud break in spring andsignificantly increased the number of floral shoots compared to theuntreated on-crop control trees. The treatment significantly increasedthe number of determinate floral shoots (inflorescences), which aretypically in low number or absent in the off-crop year bloom. Moreover,the treatment significantly increased floral shoot number on thebranches bearing fruit, bringing the number of floral shoots on brancheswith fruit, where the fruit have a direct inhibitory effect on buds, tothat of branches without fruit, where inhibition of bud break would beexpected to be less. Note that the efficacy of adenosine alone was equalto that of adenosine plus TIBA in increasing the total number of floralshoots per 100 nodes, but was not significantly different from theuntreated on-crop control. Adenosine administered at a higher rate inJanuary or administered at the same rate in July and again in January iscontemplated to increase total floral shoot number to a valuesignificantly greater than the untreated on-crop control trees atP≦0.05.

Various modifications and variations of the present disclosure will beapparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scopeand spirit of the disclosure. Although the disclosure has been describedin connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should beunderstood that the disclosure as claimed should not be unduly limitedto such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of thedescribed modes for carrying out the disclosure which are understood bythose skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of theclaims.

We claim:
 1. A method of increasing crop production, comprisingadministering to a crop plant a composition comprising an effectiveamount of a purified natural compound to increase the crop production ofthe crop plant, wherein the natural compound is selected from the groupconsisting of adenosine, an adenosine phosphate, inosine, an inosinephosphate, adenine, hypoxanthine, xanthine, and combinations thereof. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein the natural compound comprises9-beta-D-adenosine.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the naturalcompound comprises one or more of the group consisting of adenosinemonophosphate, adenosine diphosphate, adenosine triphosphate, inosine,inosine monophosphate, inosine diphosphate, inosine triphosphate,adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine.
 4. The method of claim 2, whereinthe composition further comprises one or more of a fertilizer, a plantgrowth regulator, and a biostimulant.
 5. The method of claim 4, whereinthe fertilizer is selected from the group consisting of nitrogen,potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, sulfur, iron, boron,chlorine, manganese, zinc, copper, molybdenum, nickel, cobalt, silicon,selenium, and combinations thereof.
 6. The method of claim 2, whereinthe crop plant is a perennial fruit plant.
 7. The method of claim 6,wherein the perennial fruit plant is selected from the group consistingof apple, apricot, avocado, citrus, peach, pear, pecan, pistachio, andplum.
 8. The method of claim 6, wherein the composition is administeredat one or more of the following times: (i) at 10% anthesis, (ii) at fullbloom, (iii) 30 days after 75% petal fall, (iv) at maximum peelthickness of the fruit, and (v) greater than 60 days before fruitharvest.
 9. The method of claim 2, wherein the crop plant is an annualcrop plant.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the annual crop plant isselected from the group consisting of celery, spinach, and tomato. 11.The method of claim 9, wherein the composition is administered, one,two, three, four, five, six or seven times per week.
 12. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the composition is administered by a technique selectedfrom the group consisting of foliar spray, irrigation, and trunkinjection.
 13. The method of claim 2, wherein the increased cropproduction comprises an increase in reproductive growth.
 14. The methodof claim 13, wherein the increase in reproductive growth comprises anincrease of one or more of the group consisting of number of fruitingshoots, number of fruit, fruit size, and total yield of fruit.
 15. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the increase in reproductive growthcomprises an increase in yield of commercially valuable large fruit on aper plant or per plot basis.
 16. The method of claim 2, wherein theincreased crop production comprises an increase in vegetative growth,wherein the increase in vegetative growth comprises an increase in oneor both of number of leaves and number of vegetative shoots.
 17. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the adenosine is administered as abiostimulant.
 18. The method of claim 2, wherein the adenosine isadministered as a nutritional supplement.
 19. The method of claim 2,wherein the adenosine is administered as a plant growth regulator.
 20. Acomposition comprising: (i) a purified natural compound, and (ii) afertilizer, wherein the natural compound is selected from the groupconsisting of adenosine, an adenosine phosphate, inosine, an inosinephosphate, adenine, hypoxanthine, xanthine, and combinations thereof.21. The composition of claim 20, wherein the natural compound comprises9-beta-D-adenosine.
 22. The composition of claim 20, wherein the naturalcompound comprises one or more of the group consisting of adenosinemonophosphate, adenosine diphosphate, adenosine triphosphate, inosine,inosine monophosphate, inosine diphosphate, inosine triphosphate,adenine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine.
 23. The composition of claim 21,wherein the fertilizer is selected from the group consisting ofnitrogen, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, sulfur, iron,boron, chlorine, manganese, zinc, copper, molybdenum, nickel, cobalt,selenium, silicon and combinations thereof.